CNS STORY: Bishop Skylstad, in Holy Land, calls Palestinian election 'historic'

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PALESTINIANS-SKYLSTAD Jan-10-2005 (530 words) With photos. xxxi

Bishop Skylstad, in Holy Land, calls Palestinian election 'historic'

By Judith Sudilovsky
Catholic News Service

JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Bishop William S. Skylstad of Spokane, Wash., president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, called the Palestinian election Jan. 9 a "historic day" for the Palestinians.

"The elections might mark a new day for people who are looking toward the future with hope," said Bishop Skylstad, who was in Jerusalem at the invitation of the bishops in the Holy Land for an annual meeting on the problems faced by the region's Christians.

"We wish them the best. We need to continue to address (the issues) with prayer and hope as we look to the future in solidarity with people here," Bishop Skylstad said.

Also attending the conference were Msgr. William P. Fay, general secretary of the bishops' conference, and John Carr, secretary of the U.S. bishops' Department of Social Development and World Peace.

The group observed voting at two polling sites in East Jerusalem and two in Bethlehem, West Bank, where they also celebrated Mass at a Melkite Catholic church and met with local parishioners.

"The hope would be that the Palestinian people would see this as an opportunity to clarify for themselves what is important, and what is important is to continue working toward peace," said Msgr. Fay. "We hope that whoever is elected sees that violence is not the way to (reach) real justice and peace."

Though Palestinians were out voting, there was a "degree of wariness" about whether the election would have any effect on the future, he said.

Msgr. Fay said he hoped the person elected would be one who could lead the Palestinians to a just peace and that the Palestinian people would stand behind their newly elected leader.

The next day, former Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas was declared president of the Palestinian Authority.

Abbas won 62.3 percent of the vote; his main challenger, independent candidate Mustafa Barghouti, won about 20 percent. The remaining five candidates scored in low single digits, The Associated Press reported.

Bishop Skylstad said early morning voting in East Jerusalem appeared minimal, but later in Bethlehem the turnout appeared to increase.

Balloting in East Jerusalem took place at post offices. Israel called the votes "absentee ballots" to avoid any appearance of Palestinian sovereignty over Jerusalem.

Carr said the day was "full of expectation and skepticism as to the road forward."

Bishop Skylstad agreed and said, "We picked up a mix of (emotions) all the way from skepticism to hopefulness." He added that people in the Holy Land need "peace and freedom."

The U.S. delegation was joined by Archbishop Brendan O'Brien of St. John's, Newfoundland, president of the Canadian bishops' conference, and Msgr. Mario Paquette, general secretary.

The delegation met with Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah of Jerusalem and with Archbishop Pietro Sambi, Vatican nuncio to Israel and the Palestinian territories. Delegation members were scheduled to meet with Israeli and Palestinian officials as well as tour Bethlehem University and several Catholic schools and institutions in Bethlehem. They also planned to travel to Nazareth to visit the Catholic community there.

The church officials also were scheduled to meet with representatives of Catholic agencies in the Holy Land.

END

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